“On October 29th, 2014, I came to a stop during morning rush hour traffic, and was immediately rear ended by someone who didn’t have time to stop. The hit was hard enough that my foot flew off the brake and my car (with me in it) ended up two lanes over from where the accident happened and on the sidewalk. I miraculously didn’t break any bones, but I had a dissected artery, a torn rotator cuff, severe whiplash, moderate traumatic brain injury, plus a host of other things. But the physical stuff couldn’t compare to the emotional fallout I had. I thought I was OK at first, until I was in traffic and a car behind me took a little bit too long to brake. Or until it was the 4th of July and fireworks were set off a little too close to my house. My therapist diagnosed me with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Plus the anxiety, depression, and hyperactive nervous system that comes with it, not to mention too many more symptoms. And while I am way better today than I was almost five years ago, I also know that healing takes as much time as you need it to, and that I will probably be dealing with some of this the rest of my life. When A.W.A.R.E. contacted me and asked me to share my story, I was happy to because I knew it would bring awareness to PTSD, and hopefully, my story will help someone else as well. And I love the necklace because it gives me something tangible to look at and wear so that I can see how far I’ve come and what I have to look forward to in the future.” @accidentallyrobin